Category: Opinion

I wrote this article in June 2016 but I have chosen not to publish it at the time so not to affiliate myself with or advocate an unpredictable figure such as Donald Trump. Now that the US presidential elections are over, it is safe to approach the Trump phenomenon in a more resealable way. This flat article will argue that Donald Trump is not in any way America’s worst of the worst, not that the man does not pose dangerous threats that must be addressed. Trump, nevertheless, does not break away from the country’s mainstream culture. One might argue that someone like Mr. Trump represents what is wrong with this culture but at the same time, one could also argue, this culture is what makes America the free country that it is, where every aspiring artist, craftsperson, writer, director and entrepreneur seeks to be. It is my belief that Mr. Trump does not fit to be president not because of his controversies but rather because he belongs in the world of entertainment and business, away from the political frontier. The gap between the country’s culture and politics is undoubtedly a matter of concern. The attempts to demonize or stigmatize Donald Trump, however, will serve as nothing but a scarecrow to cover for the failures of career politicians who have created the very same vacuum that Donald Trump is unfit to fill.

“He tells it like it is.” Paul Noth/ Licence obtained from the New Yorker

The GOP presumptive nominee does not view the Middle East in mere black and white. He instead engineers a map of friends and foes across the region with different shades of grey. His categories vary: Allies, “old friends” and potential allies, enemies who “become friends” and those who “will never be anything but our enemies”. His application of these categories appears to be simplistic, but his approach is much more reasonable and comprehensive than current U.S. policy. Continue reading “Trump’s Middle East Vision: Sometimes Gross but Comprehensive”→